Two Rivers: Vaccine Preventable Diseases

by KHGI

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It's easy to think of these as diseases of the past. Most young parents in the United States have never seen the devastating effects that diseases like measles or whooping cough can have on a family or community. But the truth is they still exist.

Vaccine preventable diseases that the U.S. is currently seeing a rise in include:

1. Measles – “Elimination was documented in the U.S. in 2000. Measles was seen in year following with 2014 having 667 cases.”

This year, from January 1-May 20th, 100 people from 10 states reported to have measles. The majority of people who got measles were unvaccinated.

2. Mumps

3. Pertussis (Whooping cough) – From January 1-June 13, 2016, almost 6,000 cases of pertussis were reported to CDC by 50 states and Puerto Rico.

4. Varicella (Chickenpox)

In a study by the Pediatric Academic Society, the recommended childhood immunization series prevents approximately 10.5 million cases of infectious illness a year and 33,000 deaths in the U.S. alone.*